In answer to Nathan Robinson’s complaint that Senator Ted Cruz isn’t really that smart, I think the point is that he is a first-rate demagogue. When people admit that Cruz is highly intelligent, they do not mean that he is a highly original thinker or that he demonstrates some kind of moral or philosophical intelligence. I don’t think that they mean that he is a genius, although it’s certainly possible that he has a genius IQ score. I think the reason they feel the need to concede Cruz’s intelligence is that he should be given credit for being much more than meets the eye. By contrast, for example, Michele Bachmann should probably be given less credit than meets the eye.
Virtually anyone can come up with some crazy shit to say that will thrill the hearts of the far right. Steve King came up with drug mules with calves the size of cantaloupes. Louie Gohmert came up with terror babies. There’s real talent in that kind of demagoguery, but it doesn’t demonstrate anything more than a tactical news cycle kind of thoughtfulness.
One knock on Cruz is that he has shown himself to be an inept strategist, but I have a couple of observations about this. One is that the government shutdown hurt the Republicans in the short term but also hurt the people’s confidence in the federal government in the long term. And the long term is Cruz’s play. Another is that Cruz may have made enemies of 90% or more of his fellow senators, but he’s also cowed his opponents into paralysis. His ideological game is furthered as long as the people continue to lose faith in government and he can exert enough influence to prevent a breakaway group of pragmatic senators from emerging to restore people’s confidence in government.
I’m not ready to argue that Cruz is exercising a plan that is going exactly according to script, but he knows what he is trying to do, which shows me that he’s smarter than most of his critics who can’t seem to discern anything more than a zookeeper who throws red-meat to the animals.
Cruz has figured out how to harness the TP-driven nihilism of the House to extend his influence well beyond what it might normally be. His ability to force the government shutdown against the wishes of the Speaker, as well as those of more senior than he Republican Senators, shows just how powerful he has become. I doubt that he he’ll actually run for president. I have no doubt that he wants to decide who will run and what that person’s agenda will be. Being the president means dealing with Congress and making compromises. Controlling his party in Congress frees him from that last requirement. He is an apex grifter and a power monger. The presidency offers little opportunity these days for either of those activities.
I’m guessing he’ll run. I disagree a bit with Booman, I think he is “exercising a plan that is going exactly according to script.”
He needs to cripple Rand Paul early and claim the insurgency within the party, with votes. Then use the nomination process to demagogue himself the nomination, possibly with economic populist overtones. The perceived inevitability of Hillary as nominee and president will be an assist here.
Then he is just one ‘black swan’ event, either the global economy or geopolitical confrontation, away from a suddenly credible general election campaign. Hillary’s proven ineptness at campaign management and messaging will be an assist here.
Either way the US will have a pair of candidates both with deep ties to Goldman Sachs; so there’s that.
Our Senators collectively paralyzed by coprophobia! Who knew?
Smart is situational. He’s doing a great job if he wants wing nut welfare. If he’s trying to advance in politics(something all 40ish politicians should be doing), he’s setting himself up for a fall. Getting elected President is out of the question(that’s the case for any present Republican in congress). What I see happening is the Senate is setting his fool ass up for a fall. This is the Senate we’re talking about. You have to learn how to do the job. I noticed I’m not hearing a whole lot from Senator Booker. He’s somewhere with his nose in a damn policy book trying to find his way around. When Hillary was in the Senate she took the time to figure the job out. I noticed the great Senator Warren is learning how to be a Senator as well. All the people I named make Cruz look like a drooling three year old. What the hell makes Cruz special? I see his own party finding a way to humiliate him in the future.
If I were in the Senate, I’d encourage him to run for President. If not that, find a way to tie him to the GOP. I have something along the lines of Obama setting up Paul Ryan for what happened in 2012.
Booker, Clinton, and Warren are Democrats. Makes sense that their path toward advancement relies on learning how to do the job policy-wise.
Cruz is not a Democrat. Is it possible that his path toward advancement (not the presidency) has nothing to do with policy? Instead, maybe his path is to, as Boo says, make people lose faith in government and exert enough influence to prevent a breakaway group of pragmatic senators from emerging. He can do more, for longer, as the leader of the Block Block than as president.
Smart = Able to keep a bunch of authoritarian dumbfucks thoroughly enraged enough to support the tribe over every other American.
The key is to never underestimate them. At least until they’re dead. Then you can smile and worry about the next one.